Description

Fun, funky route that looks less steep and less interesting than it is. Right of Round the Corner. Up verglas in middle of slab. Up rock up the plumb line to smattering of ice to short bit of ice at the top. 100' to ground.

When we climbed the left side of this route on 1/20/06, I broke an ice dam. The route was in very fat - it was ice only, about WI3. The dam was on the low-angle bench just before the final ice step. While leading the upper step, I broke off piece of ice. When the ice landed on the flatter section it broke the dam. A sheet of ice about 5 feet by 10 feet wide and 1 foot deep exploded off the (climber's) right side of the climb, just below what is usually the rock section. Water loudly gushed out of the hole for a couple minutes. It was impressive.

Since I was above the dam and my belayer was down and left, neither of us was in danger.

I've climbed this route several times over the years. It's a nice alternative if the pillar on Round the Corner is sketchy/out/too hard. The conditions vary a lot year to year. Some short screws and a small selection of wires, cams (0.5-2), and nerves help protect the route. It can be topped out as a long (150ft) pitch, but the upper rock gully is fairly loose and hard to protect. That being said, it's worth it and will send you on your way to the upper pitches of Round the Corner.